Business licensing and regulatory compliance are the foundational legal requirements for starting and operating a food CPG business. Before a product can be manufactured, sold, or distributed, the business itself must be properly formed and the product must meet all applicable food safety, labeling, and registration rules. These requirements exist to establish legal accountability, protect consumers, and ensure food products can be traced, regulated, and sold through legitimate channels.

At a minimum, every food brand must exist as a recognized legal entity and be registered with the appropriate federal and state agencies. This includes forming a business, obtaining a federal tax ID, and complying with food-specific regulations that govern how products are produced, labeled, and brought to market. While manufacturing partners, designers, and consultants may support parts of the process, the brand is ultimately responsible for its legal formation and regulatory compliance, regardless of where the product is made.

For Louisiana-based food CPG businesses, the core requirements include:

• Business formation and registration with the Louisiana Secretary of State (LLC or corporation)
• Federal Employer Identification Number (EIN) issued by the IRS
• FDA food facility registration (only if you're manufacturing your own products)
• FDA-compliant product labeling, including ingredients, allergens, net contents, and Nutrition Facts
• State label registration with the Louisiana Department of Health (as required)
• Process Authority review for certain shelf-stable, acidified, or low-acid foods
• UPC barcodes for products entering retail or distribution

These elements form the legal baseline of a food business. Without them, products cannot be reliably manufactured, insured, distributed, or sold.

Shelf stability describes whether a food product can be safely stored at room temperature without refrigeration. In food CPG manufacturing, shelf stability is determined primarily by pH (how acidic a product is) and water activity (aw) (how much free water is available to support microbial growth). These measurements determine which microorganisms can grow in a product and what processing, documentation, and controls are required under federal food safety regulations.

This matters because pH and water activity directly affect regulatory classification and manufacturing requirements. Certain categories of foods—such as acidified foods and low-acid canned foods—require additional review, documentation, and validated processing controls before they can be legally produced and sold. Co-manufacturers depend on verified pH and aw data to confirm that a product can be safely produced at scale and held under ambient conditions. If these values are unknown or unstable, production may be delayed or denied.

In practice, these measurements commonly apply to foods such as:

• Acidified foods: hot sauces, barbecue sauces, salsas, pickled vegetables, marinades
  
• Low-acid foods: soups, broths, gravies, some sauces and dressings
  
• Low water activity foods: spice blends, seasoning mixes, dry rubs, flour blends, snack coatings
  
• Borderline products: creamy sauces, emulsified dressings, dips, and spreads where small formulation changes can shift safety requirements
  

Key considerations for brands include:

• Changes to ingredients, batch size, or processing can alter pH or aw and require re-testing
  
• Packaging type and fill method can affect product safety over time
  
• A common mistake is assuming shelf stability based on similar products in the market rather than validated testing
  

Because these factors are tied directly to consumer safety, they are regulated at the federal level and must be addressed early in product development to avoid costly reformulation or regulatory delays.

Federal Regulatory Resource

• U.S. Food and Drug Administration (National resource) – Guidance on acidified foods, low-acid foods, and shelf-stable processing
  
  https://www.fda.gov/food

Food Safety Plans & HACCP

One of the largest advantages of working with a qualified co-packer is that the facility already maintains the required food safety systems, including HACCP and/or FDA Preventive Controls under FSMA. These plans are written, implemented, monitored, and audited at the facility level and cover sanitation, allergen controls, process controls, supply-chain controls, and recordkeeping.

Because the co-packer owns the manufacturing environment, food safety planning lives with the facility, not the brand. Product onboarding, testing, and validation are used to confirm that a product can be safely produced within the co-packer’s existing systems. This removes the burden for brands to build, manage, and audit a manufacturing-level food safety plan themselves—a major regulatory and operational benefit of outsourcing production.

Recall Planning

Recall responsibility does not transfer with manufacturing. Regardless of where a product is made, the brand remains the legal owner of the product in commerce and must be prepared to manage a recall if one is required. Most FDA-regulated food businesses are required to maintain a written recall plan under FSMA.

A brand-level recall plan typically addresses:

• how products and lot codes are identified and traced
  
• how distributors, retailers, and regulators are notified
  
• who is responsible for coordination, documentation, and communication
  

Co-packers often assist with traceability and execution, but they do not replace the brand’s obligation to be recall-ready. Clear roles and advance planning are essential to limit risk and disruption.

Product liability insurance protects a food company if a product causes illness, injury, or property damage due to contamination, undeclared allergens, packaging defects, or labeling errors. In food CPG manufacturing, this coverage pays for legal defense, settlements, and claims tied to real-world failures that can occur even when products are made in licensed, inspected facilities. It applies whether you manufacture in-house or use a co-packer and is a baseline protection for any business selling packaged food.

This insurance matters because food brands carry legal responsibility for their products once they enter the market. A single consumer complaint, allergen issue, or recall can trigger costs that quickly exceed a small or mid-sized brand’s cash reserves. As a result, most co-manufacturers require active product liability insurance before production, and large grocery chains, national distributors, and food-service distributors require proof of coverage as part of vendor onboarding. These buyers typically set minimum coverage limits and require that they—and often the co-manufacturer—be named as additional insureds. Without insurance in place, production, distribution, or retail placement simply does not move forward.

In practical manufacturing terms, product liability insurance affects whether a brand can operate, scale, and sell through established channels. Key considerations include:

• Carrying coverage appropriate to your product type (acidified, shelf-stable, refrigerated, frozen)
  
• Meeting insurance requirements from co-manufacturers and large grocery or food-service buyers
  
• Keeping policies active and updated to avoid production or shipment holds
  

Product liability insurance should be treated as a core operating requirement.